Ysatis by Givenchy (1984)

 While hipsters in my neighborhood continue to insist on wearing the most hideous of hideous ‘80s fashions (skinny jeans tucked into slouchy boots, weird appliquéd sweaters and ginormous-framed lensless eye glasses), I am having an 80s revival of my own with perfume.

 Ysatis is not only a pleasure to pronounce (look in the mirror, purse your lips and whisper “Eee-saht-ees, by Jee-vahn-shee” just for kicks), it’s a gorgeous and sensual floral. 

The surprise (and indispensable) note is coconut. It acts like a soft-focus camera lens to blur the crisp florals and give them a vaguely nutty, milky, and ever-so-slightly sweet tropical feel that could have veered into gourmand territory but stops short. It's Ysatis's hint of the exotic that makes it interesting.

Although I am not a big fan of prominently floral perfumes, I love when they're are given a twist; in this case, some fat and calories to give it a hint of richness. 

Ysatis's sexy drydown is my favorite part. That's when the notes, all tucked into bed and spooning together, melt on your skin. According to OsMoz this Dominique Ropion-constructed gem took about 18 months to finish because he wanted to balance the floral, woods and spice in the perfume, which is considered the first Oriental chypre. Well-balanced, multifaceted, intriguing and beautiful — who wouldn't want to smell like that?

Top notes: Green note, aldehydes, fruit note, rosewood, coconut

Heart notes: Tuberose, jasmine, narcissus, carnation, rose, ylang-ylang

Base  notes: Patchouli, sandalwood, castoreum, civet, oakmoss, amber, honey, cistus

Until I get a better trained nose or, more likely, my Haarman & Reimer fragrance guide in the mail (update: I got it, and the notes here are from it), the notes I list are partial and possibly off. Everywhere I looked for notes for Ysatis, they were different. One blogger I respect said there's oakmoss in it, which would make it a chypre. Other sources claim there's vanilla, which would suggest it's in the Oriental category. Yet another source didn't mention vanilla or oakmoss at all and threw in castoreum!

To make matters worse, I bet there's an Ysatis reformulation, which means that everything that makes this perfume heady, rich and interesting has been eliminated. Sigh.

How much more confusing can it get to figure out perfume? Imagine a film buff looking for information about "Vertigo" and finding out that it may have starred either Kim Novak or Grace Kelly, taken place either in San Francisco or Paris, and may have been directed by either Alfred Hitchcock or Billy Wilder. (Absurd example, but you get my drift.) I mean — seriously. It's scandalous. 

Here's an article about perfumer Christophe Ludamiel regarding the perfume industry and how he thinks it needs to let go of its "secrecy and mysticism." Ludamiel wants the public to have the opportunity to be educated about fragrance and olfaction in the same way wine lovers are educated about wine. Um, yes please.

Comments

[Monica]

Any chance you can tell how old a bottle of Ysatis is? I recently got a bottle that came in a black box with green, pink, purple jungle print edge.. Can you help me?

[Perfumaniac]

Hi Monica, thanks for stopping by. One rather unscientific way I have of determining whether or not a perfume is vintage is to go to a site like Sears or Amazon which will certainly be selling a newly reformulated perfume, and then go to eBay and type in vintage + whatever the perfume is. I did just that for Ysatis and there is a difference in the boxes. The new one has the jungle print edge, but the vintage one has a jungle print edge and the 4 Givenchy G's logo with that jungle print, too. So I would guess that unless yours has the 4 Gss, it's not vintage. Let me know how it works out!
Reformulated Ysatis : http://www.sears.com/shc/s/p_10153_12605_07465949000P?vName=BeautycName=FragrancesName=Women%27s%20Fragrancepsid=FROOGLE01sid=IDx20070921x00003a
Vintage Ysatis: http://cgi.ebay.com/YSATIS-GIVENCHY-Pure-Parfum-Spray-1-3-fl-oz-Vintage-/330387169149?cmd=ViewItempt=fragrancehash=item4cec9c1f7d

[James Scanlan]

Can anyone tell me what harpsichord music was played in the 1984 advert?

[Linda]

I guess the main difference between old and new one is box (old is black and new is purple) and the bottle( the old one is with golden lid reminds of a column). New version smells awful!!! I use it as a air freshener in my bathroom. It smells so cheap and al the luxury of richness has gone!!! Thanks God there are still some old bottles on ebay!
One question: i´ve seen pure perfume on ebay, but so strange that it is packed into black (old) box, but the bottle is like new formula one. Does anyone have expirience how it smwlls like? Like the old version or like the new version???

[Perfumaniac]

Hi Linda,

It's funny. I see the new Ysatis every time I'm at the mall, but I never feel like smelling it. I think it's because I'm sure it wont be nice, and I want to remember what it really smells like. (I can't believe you use the new stuff as air freshener! Ouch.) As for your question about the new looking bottle in the old box. I have no idea — sorry! I hope someone can answer your question...

[linda]

Hi!
can you explain why is the bottle that is on the picture above is like new edition one? i am used to other type of bottle:
http://cgi.ebay.com/Givenchy-Ysatis-3-3oz-Womens-EDT-Spray-/120666649182?pt=fragrance&hash=item1c184af25e#ht_500wt_1156

Maybe you know? This suppose to be an old ad, but why with the new type of bottle?
Thank you in advance.

[Perfumaniac]

Hi Linda,

I wish I could help you, but vintage bottles are not my specialty. I just review the perfumes. I would suggest going on MakeupAlley.com, PerfumeofLife.org, fragrantica.com, or basenotes.com and get on a forum to talk to other perfume-lovers who may be able to answer your question. In my case, I try to make sure I'm buying vintage and then try to rely on my nose — it usually knows. :-) I hope that helps!

[anarchkitty]

Hi,
A bit late in the day I know, but I've first bought Ysatis in the '80s so maybe able to help a little. It was the first grownup fragrance I could wear that wasn't green or woody (OK, some of those were actually chypres, but I didn't know that then). The miniatures (usually a part of a giftset, and about 4ml or 1/7 oz or so) were always in a bottle like that shown in the advert above. I never could afford the extrait (and my goodness the EdT was powerful enough for a 20 soemthing year old), but I think it may have come in a bottle with the same lid. The EdT had an appalling ribbed gold lid cut on a slant at the end (it continues the ridges on the glass bottle that go up over the shoulder of teh bottle), that didn't fit a single bottle I have ever bought and often got lost as a result. The modern bottles have grooves rather than the deep ridges on the older bottles, and a lid styled after the one shown in the advert. All the ones I have bought with the gold falling-off lid have been the same/very close to my original, and this does seem to keep well too.

[sandy mcghee]

Hi
Does anybody know where I might find a Ysatis brooch, it is a minature bottle but it is only about 1 inch in size, i had one of these for about 20 years it was given to me as a present but it was taken off my coat on night o was out, I am desperate to replace it, can anyone help I really miss it,
Thanks to all

[Perfumaniac]

I know I sound like a broken record, Sandy, but check eBay!

[www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=1059190594]

I have a gold box of Ysatis de givenchy. It says it it a celebratory edition, limited edition of 10 years. What year does that mean? There is a 50ml bottle of eau de toilette inside the box and a 4ml bottle of perfume in the front of the box. Does anyone know anything about this perfume please?

[Northern Lady]

Not a perfume that I would have discovered on my own but when my step mom passed away and I was cleaning out her things, I found a little bottle. I put some on and closed my eyes and pictured beautiful ladies all dressed up at a fancy party. To my amazement, the next morning I could still catch pleasant wood tones and decided it had to be my scent.

[John Stedman]

I remember buying a Givenchy perfume in 1983,a squarish bottle atomiser,a clear glass bottle,the perfume liquid was gorgeous topaz blue colour, most beautiful fragrance. I'm wonderering where and if I can buy some more. Hope you can help.
Cheers
John

[Kimberly Kennedy]

Hi everyone, this one has consistently remained smelling the same as it did in the 80's. Only difference is in the 80's you could buy the richer Parfum or perfume formula. These are the notes listed in the Perfume of the World Websight Madarine/Tangerine, Orange Blossom, Ylang Ylang, Middle, Jasmine and rose, Bottom Patchouli, Oakmoss, Vanilla, Amber, Bay Rum.////And my tester bottle I own of Ysatis has the notes listed this way. Oriental Floral only stating Mandarine, Jasmine, Patchouli. It also has this listed. Oakmoss, tree moss, along with chemical composition of alcohol, Citronellol etc.

[Dorothy Vaux]

Can you tell me where I can purchase give cry ysatis bath gel please I have tried all over with no luck, desperate to buy some

[Perfumaniac]

Have you tried eBay? Try and try again! I imagine the modern bath gel would be better though. But keep typing in vintage ysatis bath gel.

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